Despite Lockout, NHL Making Strides

It's a common refrain on the campaign trail, and as Americans go to the polls this Election Day, it's a question many of us ask ourselves: Are we better off than we were four years ago?

In the NHL, it's a question that's also worth asking. As the lockout hits Day 52, is the league better off than it was four years ago? And of course, the answer is simple:

NO THERE'S A LOCKOUT U IDIOT

... okay, fine, it's not that simple.

Believe it or not, as awful as the ongoing work stoppage may be, there's a whole lot of reason to believe that the NHL is truly better off now than it was four years ago, seven years ago or 19 years ago when Gary Bettman took office.

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